The final match on Saturday in the Primeira Liga will see Vitoria de Guimaraes heading to Estadio do Bessa Scculo XXI to take on a stuttering Boavista.
The hosts have fallen to 10th place in the league standings with 15 points after the first 13 matches, while the visitors are up in fifth place and with 25 points to their name over the same period.
Match preview
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What began as a promising start to the 2023-24 Primeira Liga season is quickly becoming a nightmare for Boavista, who are in desperate need of a positive result to lift the spirit around the camp.
The Panthers shot out the blocks, taking 13 points from the first 15, and looked as though they could be a genuine contender for one of the converted European qualification places.
However, after losing their first match of the season 4-1 to Braga, things have gone downhill at pace for Boavista, who are now winless in their last eight league games and have lost five in a row ahead of this match.
This week, Petit stepped down as the manager of the club as well, which will see them head into this match without a permanent boss in the dugout and just five points above the dotted line.
Still, the hosts won the last match between these sides 2-1 at this venue and will know that a positive performance is a must here, not just for themselves, but to keep their fans, who are growing irritable onside as well.
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Meanwhile, Vitoria are having another solid season in the top flight, though they will need to continue churning out wins if they are to challenge for the European qualification places again this term.
Os Vimaranenses went into the international break off the back of two defeats in succession but have reversed that form since returning with a 2-1 win over Farense and, more impressively, a 3-2 victory against league leaders Sporting Lisbon last weekend.
Tiago Silva, Andre Silva and Dani Silva all got their names on the scoresheet, with the latter scoring the all-important winning goal ten minutes before the end of regulation time.
That result leaves them four points behind Sporting Braga in the sole Conference League qualification spot, and they will want to remain there until they meet Os Arsenalistas on January 6.
Team News
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In addition to missing a manager, the hosts are still without goalkeeper Cesar and left-back Augusto Dabo, both through injury for this match.
Joao Goncalves will continue in goal for Boavista, with Rodrigo Abascal and Filipe Ferreira expected to make up the central defensive duo in front of him.
The visitors will also be missing two players for this match, with Mikel Villanueva (foot) and Telmo Arcanjo (cruciate ligament tear) both expected to remain sidelined for the foreseeable future.
Joao Mendes is the side's joint-top scorer with five goals this season and should keep his place in behind Andre and Jota Silva at the top end of the pitch.
Boavista possible starting lineup:
Goncalves; Agra, Abascal, Ferreira, Onyemaechi; Camara, Perez; Makouta, Malheiro, Lourenco; Bozenik
Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Varela; Fernandes, Borevkovic, Ribeiro; Maga, T. Silva, Handel, Mendes, Mangas; A. Silva, J. Silva
We say: Boavista 1-3 Vitoria de Guimaraes
Boavista are in all sorts of trouble at the moment, both on the pitch and behind the scenes, and a few more poor results could see them sucked into a relegation scrap before long. Vitoria, on the other hand, seem to have found a good patch of form and will be brimming with confidence after overcoming the league leaders last week. As a result, we feel the visitors will come away with the points in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
